Another factor is that, with very few possible exceptions, none of those cultures were isolated from the others. Even if we ignore all the migrations that went on, trade routes ran all over the Old World and there's even evidence that suggests those trade routes included contact with the New World BCE (eg, apparent evidence of Phoenician artifacts in America, tobacco found in an Egyptian mummy). Other examples included Roman trade missions to China and ancient Greek statues in Heian-kyo (Japanese imperial capital c. 800 CE).
Trade and other cultural contacts involve the exchange of ideas, myths, and legends, which can be assimilated almost immediately, especially in an oral tradition. A modern example is the "isolated" tribe with a myth about Sirius and anthropologists were amazed that the myth included a small companion, which was the white dwarf Sirius B that had not only been discovered relatively recently but cannot be detected without a telescope. But when they consulted the notes of anthropologists from before the discovery of Sirius B the myth about Sirius had no companion. The conclusion was that they were not so hermetically isolated from the outside and that when news of Sirius B filtered in it got incorporated into the myth. Even though this story is very likely apocryphal, it does demonstrate the process.
Another example is the urban legend (definitely an oral tradition) about President Nixon going for a swim in the ocean at the Western White House and being saved from drowning by a boy who happened to be there. Nixon offered him whatever reward he wanted, but all the boy wanted was that his father not learn that he had saved Nixon for which his father would surely punish him. That one spans several decades and cultures, having also been told about Hitler, Stalin, FDR, etc.
When a culture first assimilates a new myth or legend, it changes it to fit into that culture. Then just a single generation or two later, everybody knows that that myth has been in the culture since forever. The Romantic Era in 19th Century Europe believed that folk tales had remained virtually unchanged within the culture for several centuries, whereas in reality they were only a few generations old.
The most likely scenario is that these stories had spread from one culture to another, changing and being assimilated each time. Judaic tradition which ended up being written down was just one of the recipients of the story of a god making the sun stand still. It is very unlikely that Judaic tradition was the origin of the story and there is no reason to assume it to be.
This is very weak and questionable "proof" for the truth of a specific form of Christianity. It is far too unreliable to be used seriously. Yet we continually see this same kind of "proof" being presented, which only serves to make the one relying on it appear foolish. As Dr. Allan Harvey (a practicing Christian) wrote in his essay on
Thoughts on "Joshua's Long Day" (which I linked to in my first reply in this topic):
quote:
Are these just harmless stories? I believe they are actually a significant problem for the church for a couple of reasons.
First, they contribute to the perception that Christianity is for stupid people. While there are bigger factors in that perception (notably the "creation science" movement), these stories make Christians look foolish. Of course the Bible tells us that our faith will look foolish to outsiders (1 Cor. 1:18-25), but it is the cross of Christ that the world is supposed to scoff at, not our own silliness on matters unrelated to the gospel [or "stupid and senseless controversies" (2 Tim. 2:23)].
If Christians seeking to support and promote their religion were to devote even a hundredth of the time and energy on valid attempts as they spend on foolish and false nonsense, they might actually be able to accomplish something.